The Society for Animation Studies (SAS) invites submissions of proposals for individual papers and panels for its 24th Annual Conference, which will be held in Melbourne, Australia at RMIT University, 25-27 June 2012.

Animation production and consumption has continued to grow as animation itself has become ever more prevalent and visible in recent years. In parallel, the field of animation studies has expanded excitingly and dramatically, bringing together scholars from a variety of disciplines.

The theme of this year’s conference, ‘The Animation Machine’, reflects the wide range of processes, technologies, histories and structures in animation. As movement is an essential aspect of animation, whatever creates that movement may constitute an animation machine and one could conceive that animation is itself a machine. The animation machine can be considered from both the production process and the end product. Therefore, it refers to the machines of animation presentation, be these pre-20th century animation devices, movie or video screens, or even automata. The animation machine also relates to the multitude of animation production processes – from animating technologies (animation stands, cameras, computers), through to the animator’s individual creative practice. Ultimately, the animation machine can be described quite broadly and we welcome your own interpretations.

With the centenary of Australian animation approaching, the 2012 conference will also provide an opportunity to highlight some of Australia’s animation heritage. The conference will coincide with the Melbourne International Animation Festival (MIAF) and a number of crossover events are planned.

We invite proposals on a wide range of animation topics on all aspects of animation history, theory and criticism for 20-minute conference presentations. Proposals may include (but are not limited to) the following topics:

• Australian Animation

• Animation and the Asia-Pacific Region

• Animation Histories

• Future Forms of Animation

• Industrial Methods and Changes

• Materiality of Animation

• Algorithmic Animation (including Games)

• Philosophy and Animation

• Motion Graphics

• Scientific Visualisation

• Contemporary Art and Animation

• Architecture and Animation

• Drawing and Animation

• Web Animation

• Narrative and Non-Narrative Animation

• Obsolescence and Questions of Materiality

• Augmented Reality and Vision

• Automata (including Robotics)

• Animation and Pedagogy

• Documentary and Animation

• Animation Fringes and Counter-Cultures

• Sound and Animation

Please include with your individual submission the following:

• Title and abstract of no more than 250 words (suitable for publication).